Memories of a Psychopath
by chquine-harvinellisse
Summary: Every person has a story of their own and this is one about the one who joined the game for fun. The story of Kiriyama Kazuo.
1. Prologue

Prologue

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He can see the fear in their faces but he doesn't care at all. He keeps his head turned away from the rest of the people in the room and immerses himself with the item in his hands. Protests ring aloud inside the classroom and the soldiers inside keep things in proper order with force and violence.

He hears none of the screams and the sound of a knife piercing through flesh and bone to penetrate a head. He hears nothing when the soldiers fire gunshots to keep the students quiet. He hears nothing when a commotion rises because a student's collar starts beeping and it eventually kills him.

All he sees is the meager item in his hands and he glances up briefly to see if anyone in the class had something similar to what he treasures.

He will definitely keep that person alive.

But he sees none and he takes that as an invitation to kill every single one inside the room. His name is called and he suddenly feels lethargic, like the time he first killed someone.

It was ecstatic and yet it made him feel very tired at the same time.

He joined this game for fun because he no longer found it after two consecutive deaths. He gladly claims the other one and the other one was quite unfortunate.

He walks slowly and sees how the frightened ones made way for him, like mice in the presence of a prowling cat.

_Pathetic._

He is asked to pick up his pace and he takes half steps and skips to get to the front and an army green bag is thrown towards him. He makes a turn to face the door and starts to walk towards it when someone bumps on his shoulder and enters the room rudely.

The one is clad in a uniform, like the rest of them. But his blazer is blue; that means that he's not from the unfortunate class that's been chosen to participate in this game. He points to another bag at the bottom of the rack and claims that it's his.

The 'teacher' of the class labels them as dangerous ones and with that, he walks off.

The game of death begins.

He'll gladly help them go to their deaths.

He is Kiriyama Kazuo.

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**I am so in love with his character... =D**

**Even when I first saw the movie I really liked this psychopath a lot... =D**

**So first things first, this is my first Battle Royale fanfiction and no offense meant but I think this is better than Hunger Games (or am I too biased?). And I really like the way Kiriyama was portrayed by Masanobu...**

**I MEAN HE DIDN'T EVEN SPEAK AT ALL!**

**Anyway, I've been on a long hiatus and this has been in my computer since... forever... =D**

**So please do not hesitate to click the REVIEW button and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated... =D**

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**chquine_harvinellisse**


	2. Chapter 1

**Since the characters are Japanese, I will be using their last names first and will refer to them as such even when not conversing... =D**

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Chapter 1

He and She

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The bell starts ringing and the students run to make it to their respective classes. Various methods are used by the desperate students to help themselves in before they aren't allowed anywhere near the inside of their school. Disciplinary committee members form the primary line right beside the open gate with open and keen eyes to find audacious ones that don't follow the clothing code of their school. The head of the disciplinary committee stands across his committee members to check if they have overlooked anything.

Students push and shove as the final seconds or 'mercy minute' as they call it comes to a dangerous halt; that will signal that they are no longer allowed to enter the school premises. The disciplinary head takes a glance at his wristwatch to see that there are only fifteen seconds left before they completely deny the late-comers entrance. He mentally counts the seconds when a sudden flash of color blinds him and the next thing he knows, he's on his back; on the ground.

The scene makes the shoving students stop and the committee members stare awkwardly at their fallen chairman. The one who pushed the discipline's head is on top of him. They all see that it's a girl and she quickly stands up and bows to apologize. The committee members attend to their chairman who assures them that he's alright with an open palm gesture.

Seeing that the chairman has stopped paying attention to the 'mercy minute', the students take advantage of the situation and rush inside without a second thought. The girl who accidentally bumped on the chairman bows over and over again as she exclaims her apologies with every bow she takes.

"I am so sorry!" She says for the twentieth time, as the committee members have been keeping count, that moment. She suddenly gasps as she sees the stain on the chairman's dress shirt uniform. She pulls her handkerchief from her pocket and starts wiping the stain with it.

"Oh my! I am so sorry!" She apologizes again. The chairman puts up a hand to make her stop but she doesn't see it as the stain on his uniform has her more engrossed than his command for her to keep quiet. She continues to wipe the stain with her eyes trained on the ground when one of the members finally spoke up.

"Chairman," he says, "The mercy minute ended a minute ago."

And even though she was not the one addressed to, the girl looks up to them with panic in her eyes. "The mercy minute is over? Oh my!" She stands up straight and gives them all a 90 degree bow with an apology and a statement that she'll be heading off first. After making a ceremonious apology, she ran off to the wing of her classroom.

The chairman's eyes narrow at her retreating form. The committee members see this and they follow the chairman's gaze with an equally puzzled look. He shakes his head and motions them to close the gates. He releases a loud sigh as he looks at the dress shirt stained with takoyaki sauce. He mentally chides himself for falling for the girl's trick again and clicks his tongue with it.

"What's the matter _senpai_?" One of the younger members asks him.

He regards the younger one with a glance before he looks back to the direction where she disappeared to and says, "Be careful of that one. She may look innocent but she's a real troublemaker.

The younger one tilts his head. "Why is that _senpai_?"

"It's just the way she is," he plainly explains. "She'll be easy to recognize from the back though." When he received no reply he continues, "You can see a sliver of purple in her hair when she has her back on you."

The younger one nods and finally realizes who his senior is talking about.

"Takumi Naka."

Takumi yawns as she collects her things from inside her desk and takes her bag that's under her chair. She carries her textbooks in her left arm and she holds her bag in the other. She doesn't bother to smooth out her tie that's slightly turned to the side after the whole fiasco at the gate. Her classmates start murmuring to her.

"Takumi, you really made a scene there!" One exclaims with half awe and half fear in her voice.

"I knew no one else would pull that kind of stunt with the disciplinary chairman."

"You're really brave Takumi."

"You helped us buy some time from the mercy minute too. You're the best Takumi."

To those shallow compliments, Takumi only chuckles heartlessly. She knows that her classmates are just flattering her because she did most of them a favor. She didn't mean it for them though; she meant it for her own satisfaction. She knows that her classmates could care less if she got in trouble for messing with the disciplinary committee's chairman; perhaps with his members as well. She shrugs and says, "I'm sure he's tired of seeing me in his office anyway. So it's easy for me to pull that stunt on him."

Her classmates nod at her words and then revert back to their own businesses. Takumi internally scoffs at how fickle and shallow her classmates are. She ignores them as she makes her way through the crowded halls to get to her class. She wasn't late for her first subject; she pulled that stunt with the disciplinary chairman because she felt tardy when she woke up and moved slower than she should have.

She arrives at the classroom and slides the door open. She doesn't notice the boy sitting on the seat just behind her as she takes hers. She puts her things down and finally adjusts her tie to the proper position. She slumps back and toys with the end of her tie until one by one her other classmates start to fill the once empty room. Takumi sighs as she straightens up and takes her textbooks.

Their science teacher arrives earlier than he usually does and puts his folder and clear book on the wooden table with a faded brown paint. The walls are dull and grey and the chairs and tables seem just as lifeless. Takumi does not like the ambience of their classroom whenever they were having a science class. It makes her feel older than she really is because of the monotonous ambience and routines that seem to go on forever. She's sure her classmates don't like it too but she's also sure that her classmates have other superficial reasons.

Their teacher writes his name on the board and Takumi winces as she hears the chalk screech against the abused green of the blackboard. She, along with her other classmates are puzzled as to why their teacher would feel the need to write his name. That is unless his name is the new strategy in their curriculum to study the efficiency of Physics formulas. She glances at her classmates who are taking advantage of the moment to immerse themselves in something else that is not approved by their teacher during class hours.

Takumi sighs and turns her attention to their teacher once more. His hand writing is unusually fancy today and she wonders as to why that is. When he turns fully, she notes that he looks presentable in a real sense. He's wearing an army green dress shirt that's obviously been pressed and starched. His collar is folded neatly; not a crease in sight. The buttons of his dress shirt are complete and neatly placed. His hair is waxed and slicked back. His pants are new and so are his shoes. His dress shirt is tucked in his pants neatly.

"Today, we have a new student from the star section," the teacher announces and the entire class stirs.

Students from the star sections have different teachers from those in the lower sections. So the teachers of the lower sections never meet students from the star sections and vice versa. Transfers from the star sections could only mean a drop in the student's grades or an offense that can potentially ruin the section's image. Still, students from the star sections are highly esteemed so that explains why the teacher is so stiff and formal today.

"Kiriyama-kun," the teacher's voice cracks at the last syllable of the name and he clears his throat. "Please come in front and introduce yourself."

The metal feet of the chair screech against the old linoleum floor and Takumi freezes. The sounds of lethargic footsteps ring in her ears and she glances to her side where the new student walks. His hair is a shade of amber and is curly and wild. It sticks out appropriately despite the messy feel it gives people who see it. He wears the same black blazer over the white dress shirt of their school; one that the disciplinary committee members don't wear to help them be recognized easily. He stuffs his hands into his pockets as he walks slowly to the front where the teacher has left for him to claim.

He gives the entire class a blank uninterested gaze and starts, "My name is Kiriyama Kazuo." He bows and retreats from the front to get back to his seat. The entire class is quiet. Takumi risks to glance up and locks gazes with him momentarily.

For a moment, she feels frozen as she locks gazes with those eyes of his that seem to be a complete void. She feels sized in those eyes and even with the momentary lapse when they lock gazes; she feels emptiness and coldness in his brown eyes.

Takumi feels stiff before she turns her attention back to the front where their teacher is starting to teach with a clear and un-sleazy voice like he just drank a whole gallon of sake the night prior. A student raises her hand and suggests that they introduce themselves to the new student so he'll know who his new classmates are better. She smirks at the procrastinating tactic that the teacher brushes off with a wave of his hand with a statement that they're not pre-school anymore.

She feels a poke on her shoulder from behind and she warily turns to him only to meet those cryptic eyes once again. He holds a pink mechanical pencil that belongs to her. She bows her head slightly in thanks and gets her pen from him. Before she turns back though, she could not mistake how the corner of his lip curled upward to form an eerie yet undeniably attractive smirk.

Takumi feels weaker than she really is and she doesn't like it. She's never felt so threatened before. She doesn't particularly hate Kiriyama for transferring into their section for being a trouble-maker, but she can't help but be resentful of those eyes of his.

The dismissal bell rings and Takumi stands up from her seat. She stretches her arms to remove the numbing feeling in them. She retrieves her bag and heads for the gate of the school. She makes sure that she keeps away from the prying eyes of the Disciplinary committee members. She finds herself purposely bumping onto students just to disguise her presence from the committee. She follows a horde of students that leave the school premises.

She goes into an alley that's in between two apartment buildings. Her hands make their way to the sides of her school blazer and she looks warily around her and upwards. She reaches a rusty ladder that brings her to the roof of a smaller structure that she never bothered to know what; is sandwiched in between two other apartment buildings. Takumi always thought that it was an antique shop since the sign is a bit rusty and decorated by intricate lines. She swiftly and nimbly climbs up the ladder, goes over the rusty wire fence and lands on her foot.

She sits down and scatters her things from inside her bag. Her home isn't far from that spot but she makes sure to go there to do her homework. Her house feels too serene for her to do her homework so she does it in the rooftop instead. She leans against the rusty signboard and flips her notebook open. She retrieves her pen and taps her chin with it before she starts writing the solution for their Mathematics problem. She takes out her book to compare her answers with the references in it.

A sudden sound makes her jump slightly in surprise. She turns and realizes that it came from behind her. She peers down to look through the holes of the old sign board. A quick glance at her clock tells her that it's already 6 in the evening. Takumi looks up and sees that the overhead lights on the adjacent buildings are turned on. She peeks through the hole again and sees the school delinquents circling around one student. She couldn't see who they are ganging up against since they're blocking the poor kid's back.

She scoffs and resumes finishing her homework. A quick tap on her chin and she's sent scribbling down notes on her notebook.

"You're the student who got transferred to the bottom section right?" She hears one of the delinquents shout. Her head perks upwards at that. Their section is the lowest one and as far as she knows only one student got transferred to their section.

Kiriyama.

She peeks through the gap and she sees the unmistakable mop of auburn hair that has its back on her. She quickly pulls herself away and leans against the secured part of the signboard. Briefly, Takumi thinks if she should just run for it or if she should just stay there and let it pass.

"You think you're so tough huh?" Another delinquent spits.

Takumi then starts hearing the delinquents talking all at the same time. She's always known that those delinquents always pick up on the lonely ones that don't look like he or she can fight against them. Thankfully for her, she stays out of their way always by taking the ladder at the back of the old antique shop. She continues waiting in silence until a shout breaks her out of her thoughts.

"I've had enough of this!"

She peeks and sees the fattest one of them hurling his fist towards the auburn-haired classmate of hers. A hand flies to her mouth to keep a shriek from coming out of it. Terror starts to invade her as Kiriyama makes no move to defend.

Or so she thought until he raises his hand to catch the fist. He then kicks the fat one in the crotch and flings him over his shoulder. Takumi watches as the fat one doubles over in pain while cursing Kiriyama. The others start to get enraged and they attack Kiriyama all at the same time.

There are five of them, one tries to land a kick on Kiriyama's shoulder but the latter grabs the ankle and twists it to make the former land on the ground on his side. He then kicks the attacker's nose and another shout of pain rings in the alley. Two come at him at once, one of them grabs him in a headlock and the other one has a lead pipe in hand. The one with the pipe tries to hit Kiriyama on the head but the latter merely slides down and makes the pipe crash onto the captor's head.

Takumi slowly crawls out of their sight and to the ladder. She doesn't want to be involved in this kind of mess so she carefully makes her way across the rooftop. She ignores the shouts of pain and comes one after the other and she continues crawling her way to safety. Her hand barely touches the metal of the ladder when the noises stop. She winces and waits for the sounds to continue. Mentally, she counts from one to a hundred but still the alley is deathly silent. If she were to come down, then her footsteps on the metal ladder would definitely be heard by the half-conscious delinquents. Plus there's no guarantee that they don't have reinforcements with them so she counts to another hundred.

Sounds of footsteps reach her ears and she decides to risk it by jumping instead of climbing down. She can always make a run for it since her house is nearby. She glances down and sees that the ground isn't as far as she originally thought it would be. She takes a deep breath before she quickly inches herself into the hole she made in the wire fence and sits on the edge. Her legs are dangling down the edge and with a final push, she jumps to the ground.

She lands on her feet again and after three full seconds, she makes a mad dash to the end of the alley. Her eyes are on her book bag that's clutched to her chest. She looks up every now and then so she can gauge where she is. When she sees the street light becoming bigger, she allows herself to relax.

Takumi never thought that she'd bump to someone. Stumbling backwards, she regains her balance but then the reality of the situation brings her immediate terror. If she bumped into someone then that means that there's someone else in the vicinity; though the alley isn't exactly secluded, people rarely pass through the path.

Raising her eyes cautiously, Takumi catches a glimpse of their school uniform and her heart pushes against her windpipe. Her eyes travel further upwards until she sees a well-defined chin. At that moment, Takumi doesn't know if she'll be thankful or despaired now that she's seen Kiriyama again.

His mouth is in an apathetically taut line and Takumi thinks she prefers that over the smirk that he showed her that morning. Thousands of encounters with the Disciplinary committee taught her that apologies get most people, but she has a feeling that it won't work on her new and enigmatic classmate. Nonetheless, she clutches her book bag to her chest again and prepares herself to apologize.

Takumi is surprised (and still horrified) when Kiriyama pushes her upright through her shoulder; she's forced to stand upright again. A questioning look passes her eyes but then is disappears into surprise when he slouches to meet her eye level. If her estimations are correct then she might just reach his chest.

"Go home," he says lowly and enigmatically. Is everything about him enigmatic?

Takumi nods, apparently too surprised, terrified and flustered to argue. She spins on her heel and breaks into a sprint to reach her house. It's just three intersections away yet it seems like a long walk since her encounter with Kiriyama. Her house is too big for someone who lives alone; it's in line with the other residential houses where large families live. Fitting the key into the hole of the gate's padlock, she tries to keep calm. She can still feel Kiriyama's shadow and gaze hovering over her and for some reason, her finger gets caught in between the gate's bar and the hole it goes into.

Hissing, she makes sure the gate is closed before she pinches the area around the formed wound and lets it bleed. Takumi goes inside her house and heaves out a sigh of relief.

Suddenly school seems a whole lot more dreadful than it was before.

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**So yeah. In a nutshell this is the first chapter...**

**Is my fic too predictable?**

**The prologue ruined it didn't it?**

**Sorry!**

**Anyway please do click the REVIEW button and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated... =D**

**.**

**chquine_harvinellisse**


	3. Chapter 2

**I apologize for the late update...**

**Like I always say to my readers... I don't have internet and I'm a college student... So yeah... =D**

**I just type this in my laptop and wait for the weekend to update...**

**Also the craziness in this chapter will be eventually explained... =D**

**Anyway pay no heed to this... hahaha! =D**

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Chapter 2

Mysterious and Puzzling

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Takumi groans loudly as her alarm loudly goes off. She swings her right hand to keep it silent and winces when the sudden pain tells her that she just used her injured hand to silence her alarm. She sits up and rubs off the sleep from her eyes, making sure that she doesn't use her injured hand again.

Feeling a little punctual, she decides to get out of bed and take a shower. The cold water isn't really merciful to her finger wound. It gives a loud sting yet it numbs. Takumi hisses at the contradictory sensation; after her shower, she dresses her finger with gauze. She goes through the monotonous routine of picking up her pre-ironed uniform from her closet and preparing toast and reheating the sushi she bought the other day.

Fixing her tie, Takumi glances at the mirror and decides to keep her hair the way it is. She combs it and puts on her shoes afterwards. There's the usual routine of making sure her door is locked before she leaves. Truthfully she doesn't know what inspired her to get up early and go to school.

She's nearly at the school when the events of last night register in her mind once again. Stopping in her tracks, she looks up to see that the Disciplinary committee is at the gate, doing their morning chores as usual. Contemplating on whether she should use the back entrance since she isn't running late, Takumi moves away from the throng of students but then an arm wraps around her neck in an almost choking grip. She is forced back to the throng of rushing students.

Befuddled and disoriented, Takumi glances to her left where she sees a fist and then up to see that curly mess of auburn hair that belongs to none other than Kiriyama.

She wants to protest but his tight hold on her nearly makes it impossible for her to breathe. They march to the gates fearlessly, like the Disciplinary can't do anything when Kiriyama walks by. True to that, the Disciplinary committee stands clear when he approaches the gates. The head narrows his eyes at Takumi but he doesn't do anything about her entrance.

When they are safely out of the Disciplinary committee's eyes, Kiriyama releases her from his grip. It takes s moment for her to gain her bearings and then she looks up to him. Clearing her throat, Takumi prepares to bow and express her gratitude.

She's taken by surprise when she feels a sudden tug at her hair. Kiriyama has her purple lock of hair twirled around his index finger and rubbed it with his thumb. His eyes are the same void but his lips are twisted in the same smirk he had the first time they met.

He untwines the lock from his fingers and smoothes it with his hand. Takumi is dumbfounded by the sudden action. She backs away from him and squeaks weakly, "What's your problem?"

At that his smirk turns sardonic and reaches his eyes. His expression flares her temper even more. He stands there coolly with his hands tucked inside the pockets of his school pants. She would consider him handsome if she weren't so angry. Again he leans to her eye level and this time she isn't flustered to just blindly nod to his command like last night. She meets his gaze evenly and for the first time she sees… amusement in his brown eyes.

"You're welcome," he mutters as he straightens up. Turning his back to her, Kiriyama leaves. Takumi is left speechless in his wake. She knows she should have at least expressed her gratitude, but his gestures, his actions and generally everything about him is just puzzling. Did he really have to twirl her purple lock in between his fingers? Did he really have to bend down to her eye level just to say the simplest of things?

Collecting herself once more, she heads to her classroom. Unfortunately for her, Kiriyama is in all of her classes. But at least she'd be able to expect a decent classroom discussion from her teachers. She tightens her grip on the strap of her book bag and wears a permanent scowl on her face. She intends to keep it like that until the day ends.

Encounters with Kiriyama Kazuo isn't really that easy to avoid especially since he sits just behind her and he's her lab partner because no one chose either of them. During classes, he keeps an apathetic front and Takumi wonders if he's bipolar or something. After all, he acted so- impulsively in front of her that morning and then he proceeds to ignore her at the very next class.

Shaking her head, she puts her books inside her book bag and vows to start studying for the coming exams the following week. She has work every Saturdays at the local laundry house. She can study after her shift and she has a Sunday to spare. While grades aren't really a problem to Takumi, she'd like to have grades that can put her reputation to shame. With a plan laid out inside her head, she makes her way to the school gates and get ready to head home.

She opts to leave before everyone else does, which is quite contrary to the way she usually does. She's just not in the mood to run into Kiriyama again. She joins with the students that are gathered in front of the school gates. Currently, the gates are not yet opened and the members of the Disciplinary committee are nowhere to be found. Usually, the gates are opened and closed by those troublesome committee members.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Takumi pouts as she waits for the gates to be opened. If she has to wait then chances are, she'll see Kiriyama again and if given the opportunity, she doesn't want to run into that apathetic excuse for a human being. She hears the clanging of metal against one another and she beams. The gates are opened and the students nearly trample the unfortunate soul that opened them. Takumi lets the throng carry her with them until she's finally out of the school premises. Debating whether she should take the shortcut home or take the longer way, she ducks her head just in case there's a Disciplinary committee member that's looking for her. Her takoyaki sauce stunt with the head was just yesterday after all.

The funny thing is that even though Takumi is nowhere near Kiriyama's shadow, she feels like he's still looming over her. She can still feel his apathetic eyes boring a hole into her head and into her mind. She frowns at the fact that he dominates her thoughts even though he hasn't showed himself to her again. But then again with that kind of stare and those eyes of void, ignoring him will prove to be quite difficult indeed.

The way she's thinking about him and shamelessly denying it is quite irritating.

Emerge, wring and throw. Those are the three words that Takumi has memorized since the start of her career in the local laundry house. Emerge the clothes from the washing machine, wring them until most of the water is gone and throw them into the pail. The next destination is the rinsing area where another one of the workers rinse the soap suds off.

She carries the pail and hands them to the rinsing room. The one in charge of the rinsing is a bulky man who always wears a wife beater and a pair of black cycling shorts. She does her best to keep from engaging in any conversation with him, he's intimidating after all. After delivering her clothes she heads back to her station.

Her thoughts of Kiriyama seem to have vanished since she doesn't have the feeling that his shadow is looming over her anymore. After a few more clothes, her name blasts out of the intercom inside the laundry house. Standing up, Takumi heads to the manager's area. Despite its name it isn't anything flashy. The room in itself is very small and there is barely any space when you open the door. There's a desk and a mono block chair with a worn out cushion at the sitting area. The desk is already plunging down and is littered with papers along with a single over-used computer. The paint on the walls is getting peeled off and there are two fans mounted on the wall and focused on the area where the manager sits. There are no windows; just a wooden door.

The manger himself is not a good picture to see either. He always wears a neon shirt, be it pink or green and sometimes even yellow. Most of the times he smokes but lately he only does it outside. He's actually good friends with the one who rinses the clothes. The other employees, such as the clerk at the front desk, the maintenance, the janitress, the one who hangs the clothes and Takumi are all girls, so the two stick together.

"Is there something you need?" She asks the manager who's playing Galaga in his computer.

He raises his eyes and narrows them at her. "You're on rinsing duty."

"But that's not my job," she protests. She's not complaining because she can't do the job but she doesn't like being given other people's jobs. Her finger is already throbbing even with just the soap. Besides, she's planning to get out early so she can study more.

The manager however, pays no attention to her and instead he ends his game and takes out his keys from the desk drawer. "Anyway, I'll give the keys to the clerk. You're leaving early right? So hurry up and finish those clothes so you can leave."

"What if I can't finish them all?" She dares ask.

The manager stands up without answering and heads to the door. He yawns a bit and she makes a move to follow him outside. "If you don't finish then you're not leaving," he tells her authoritatively.

Takumi tries to argue but then the manager and the other guy leaves the laundry house. She couldn't even make a statement against him. At first she is hoping that someone will volunteer to help her but she's disappointed to find out that she's on her own. Even the maintenance girl pretended to check on the washing machines just so she wouldn't be forced to help Takumi.

Begrudgingly, she heads to the rinsing area to quickly finish her work. She wants to go back home to continue studying for her exams. It's nearly the same as her initial job but she has to emerge and submerge the clothes over and over again to get rid of the soap suds. Soon her back is aching, her hands feel itchy and raw at the same time and her finger is bleeding again. Resting for a while, she glances at the clock that's above the door frame. It's already 5 in the afternoon and the sun will be setting soon.

She tries to be positive and continues on with her task but then the minutes drag on and her fatigue is starting to catch up with her. She leans against a wall and sighs deeply. It seems to her as if she's been working for hours in vain. Her morale is dropping and she wants nothing more than to go home and rest since she doesn't think that she can study anymore. Looking in front of her, there are still pails of clothes waiting for her. Takumi is neither an optimist nor a pessimist but she knows when she can't do something.

If she has a choice then she won't work in the laundry house anymore. She hears the door open and a part of her prays that it's the real person who does her job and a part of her prays that it's one of the other employees who are there to help her. "Can you please help me out here?" She asks to the unknown 'someone' by the door.

She is met with silence and she turns. Her eyes widen and she gasps loudly. "Wha-What are you doing here?" She bursts.

By the door stands a half naked Kiriyama and Takumi doesn't know at which fact she should be surprised at: the fact that he's there or the fact that he's there _and_ half-naked? How did he get in anyway?

"Restroom," he says with a slight pant in his voice. "Where is the restroom?"

Still too shocked to speak, she just gapes at him. There are small traces of sweat atop his brows and his hair is slightly damp. His bare torso is well-built and his muscles are well-toned though not enough to be labeled 'delectable'. She shakes her head at the thought and says in lieu of an answer, "You shouldn't be here!"

Kiriyama's gaze turns from her face to the pails in front of her. He purposefully strides forward and grabs her by the nose. He pinches hard and Takumi's eyes close shut. She raises a fist but then he stops it with a grip on her wrist. She tries to retaliate with her hand but then he grabs that as well with the same hand. She's immobilized and helpless and it feels like her nose is going to be removed from her face.

Tears form at the corners of her eyes and just when she thinks that Kiriyama will really take her nose off, he lets her go. She chokes, coughs and gasps for air. Something trickles down her mandible and she wipes a finger with it. When she pulls her finger away she sees red and it makes her panic.

"What did you do?!" She bursts again but then he grabs her wrist again and drags her out of the rinsing room.

Takumi protests and squirms and relents but his grip on her wrist is bruising. She can't fight him; she knows that now. The other female employees stir at the sight of a half-naked male dragging her out of the laundry house. They note her bleeding nose and thankfully, take it as an excuse for Takumi's sudden departure.

He drags her to the gasoline station which is only three stores from the laundry house. Heading to the ladies' restroom, he pushes her to the sink and turns the tap on. He wipes off the blood and makes her stand still right in front of the sink as he produces a tissue from his pocket.

Takumi snatches it from her hand and wipes her own nose. She glares at him and storms out of the restroom. The wound on her finger is throbbing and she glances at it before she feels those eyes boring into her again. She turns and glares at the still-half-naked Kiriyama. "Leave me alone, Kiriyama!"

A look of amusement passes through Kiriyama's face when his name rolls off her lips. One of the gasoline station employees hand him a jacket that was at the lost and found. He puts the cotton clothing on without taking his eyes off Takumi. Feeling equally challenged, she keeps her eyes on him too. Zipping the jacket, he walks towards her and that infuriating smirk adorns his lips again.

"What do you want from me?" Takumi asks in a low and yet obviously threatening voice.

He doesn't answer and just says, "You have pretty hair…"

Whatever resolve she has to hate Kiriyama is gone when he told her that compliment. She steps backwards and her mouth hangs uselessly agape. Those were the most words that he's said to her since the day they met. His smirk grows and before she knows it, he's grasped the sliver of purple hair. He twirls it between his pointer and his middle finger and tugs, causing her to take two steps towards him.

He opens his mouth to speak but then a loud beep reaches their ears. Suddenly, Takumi comes to her senses. She was having a staring contest with Kiriyama, who dragged her half-naked to the venue a few moments ago, in the middle of a gasoline station. Suddenly the entirety of her pranks with the Disciplinary committee seems to be insignificant compared to this. She wrenches away from Kiriyama's grip and heads off to the direction of her house.

She's embarrassed, frustrated, angry and unnerved. Why did he have to be so hard to read and so mysterious? While Takumi doesn't necessarily hate him, she finds no reason to like him either. Her pride gets the best of her and she decides to hate him there and then.

Then again if he hadn't pinched her nose like he did, she would still be stuck inside the laundry house, doing a task that isn't hers in the first place.

"How did he get in there anyway?" She muses out loud. Shaking her head and promptly deciding to not think of him anymore, Takumi opens the gate of her house and locks it securely. Once the wind blows, she registers that her clothes are wet and she didn't even get to change. She shivers before jogging into her house. She makes a mental list of what she should do which include showering, eating and studying. She deposits her slippers in the rack and heads to the bathroom.

The fact that Kiriyama clouds her thoughts is infuriating. Why can't he just be an outsider? Why does he have to wrench his way inside someone's mind? Why does he have to be so damn mysterious? Why is he so impulsive?

Thinking back to the way he made an entrance into the laundry house, Takumi suddenly feels her cheeks getting hot. "Stop it Takumi Naka!" She scolds herself. "You're just tired. You need to rest."

Agreeing with her own conclusion, she turns off the shower and heads out with her bathrobe on. Across the bathroom door is a picture frame of faded gold. She narrows her eyes in disgust at the sight of it. It's a picture of her family, her mom and her dad with her when she was nine. Truthfully, she doesn't know why she keeps it with her. She wanted to throw it away when she moved but then she got pre-occupied by the other junk that she wasn't able to. Once, she was feeling sentimental and she decided to hang it across her bathroom door with tears streaming down her face. But it was months ago and old feelings resurfaced again.

The phone catches her attention and she pads silently through the narrow hall that led to the living room. "Hello?"

"Naka? It's me."

She recognizes the voice and rage bubbles inside her. It's her dad.

"What do you want?" She snaps.

"I want to talk," he explains briefly.

Scoffing, Naka asks, "What is there to talk about? I thought you disowned me?"

"Would I have sent you money if I had?"

"So you can buy your children now?" She bitterly asks.

She hears a sigh before she crosses her arms across her chest. It's a defense mechanism she's developed over the course of being alone. It helps her keep calm and it keeps her from breaking down like a complete immature idiot. "Just come back home, Naka."

"When mom comes back then I'll come back too," she says.

"Your mom won't come back anymore; you know that."

"Then I guess you're still stuck with that whore and that son of hers right?"

"Naka!" He explodes. "How dare you talk about Ueno like that?"

Her fists tremble and she grabs the sleeve of her bathrobe. She's seething and that's bad. Kiriyama's episode has already angered her and this intensifies it. "Don't call me anymore. I'm sure Ueno and Kyosuke will appreciate it if you keep away from me."

"Naka-,"

"I'll only come back if mom does," Takumi says succinctly. "Until then, your daughter is dead."

She slams the receiver down and flops onto the couch. She's beyond exhausted mentally speaking and she doesn't want any more drama. Suddenly she wants to be nine again, where her parents are still together and her mom is still alive.

The past of a girl who ran away from home comes flashing back and though she's cried a lot of times before, she still cries now.

And suddenly, Kiriyama isn't as bad as she thinks; at least he can give her some distraction from the reality of her life.

* * *

**How was it?  
**

**Terrible? Unbearable? Loathsome?**

**Hahaha! =D**

**Chapter three is in progress now... =D**

**Anyway please do click the REVIEW button and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated... =D**

**Thanks for reading!**

**chquine_harvinellisse**


	4. Chapter 3

**Late update we meet again... Haha!**

**Again I'm sorry if I kept my readers hanging... But I'm back with this chapter I particularly had fun writing... =D**

**I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it...**

**The fight scene is really crappy... But that's because I don't do fight scenes well... Just to warn you... .**

**Anyway here it is! =D**

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Chapter 3

Wounds and Happiness

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Sunday was dreary and Takumi decided then to force herself to study. She managed to cram all the information into her head before she fell asleep. When she woke up Monday morning though, she felt soulless.

It's a typical Monday morning: the students are pushing and shoving because they're late. Takumi on the other hand is being swept by the current rather than making her own pace. Her eyes are red and puffy from crying too much. Her house is too big for her and she can't help but think of how empty it is for her. For the entire weekend, she would think about her mother and then she'd start crying, then she'd get over it and do something else before remembering her mother again. It was an endless and tiring cycle.

There are no Disciplinary committee members by the gates so Takumi doesn't have to pull some sort of stunt to get through. She gets into the school grounds and walks to her designated room. Sighing, she settles herself on her chair. Like usual, she feels Kiriyama's eyes boring into her head again but she can't bring herself to care about him anymore.

After all, she has an exam to ace.

"Takumi? Takumi Naka!"

Takumi snaps out of her stupor and realizes that all of her classmates aren't in the room anymore. She glances down at her test paper that's filled with answers. Her adviser raises his brows at her puzzled expression and asks exasperatedly, "Are you going to pass your paper or not?"

Nodding, Takumi pushes her chair back and heads to the teacher's table. She puts her paper down and inclines her head shortly before she gathers her belongings on her chair and leaves. The school is nearly empty and that saves her the trouble of running into the Disciplinary committee members. There are no students that can sweep her out of the school gates so she takes her time to revel in the silence of the campus. Their school is actually a beautiful sight given the time to fully examine and appreciate it. The trees really do dance to the wind's whim; their branches sway to and fro like a geisha spinning gracefully to the sound of the koto.

And again she remembers her mother. The tears form at the corners of her eyes but she blinks them away. Takumi's had too much tears in her opinion and she doesn't want to sulk anymore. Her past is done and her present is still before her. So she shouldn't wallow anymore.

Right?

Apparently she still wants to wallow because her tears start falling like a mad waterfall. Covering her mouth to keep a sob from disturbing the serene wind, Takumi runs off to some secluded place where she can cry. Her feet bring her to the bicycle stands at the back of the school building. She leans against one of the metal half-oblongs mounted on the ground, where the wheels of the bicycles are inserted. Dirt stains her knees and she could care less. Her palms scrape against the rust-covered metal curves and tears stain her cheeks.

They say that crying relieves someone, but for Takumi, crying only makes things heavier for her.

"Why did that person have to call?" She mumbles. "Why did he have to disturb me again?"

She tries to still her sobs and sniffles while wiping her tears. She has to go home and maybe take a shower to relieve the stress she's feeling. Shakily, she stands up and wipes off her tears. After dusting the dirt off her knees and gaining back her bearings, she heads to the back entrance of the school where there are less people. She briefly wonders if any store owner would be willing to sell her some sake despite the fact that she's only a minor. After all, isn't liquor the best way to forget?

Heading to the nearest convenience store, Takumi's mind is set on drowning herself with sake. The cashier greets her with a smile and she ignores the cheery shop personnel, after all, a lot of ruder customers come to that shop as well.

Without wasting any more time, she heads to the liquor section and sees the sake bottle sitting innocently on the shelves. Without warning, she grabs three of them at a time and slams them onto the counter, making sure that she won't break them. The cashier turns to her and says, "We are not allowed to sell sake to minors."

"My dad asked me to buy him some," Takumi says. The mere thought of her dad disgusts her but she endures.

"We're still not allowed to sell sake to minors, miss."

Not being in the mood to argue, Takumi just nods and leaves the bottles on the counter when she leaves. She walks off with her feet leading her to somewhere. Everything is a blur, the shops' neon signs seem too bright, the stop light seems to flicker irregularly; everything in general is just wrong.

All because of a single phone call.

The sun is setting at the western horizon when she looks up and sees the antique shop where she always stays. Despite feeling like her entire body is numb, she climbs the ladder and wedges herself into the hole she's made for herself, in case she didn't want to climb over the wire fence. She crosses the flat roof and assumes her usual position, leaning behind the signboard.

"It feels better if it's like this…" she mutters, though she's not sure what feels better for her. Then again, there's nothing sure for her anymore.

Closing her eyes, she sighs. Punching someone would make her feel a whole lot better; that much she's sure of. A smirk comes across her face when she imagines punching Kiriyama's face. "That would be really nice…" she muses out loud.

Her senses come to full alert when she hears the ladder creaking. She immediately stands up to prepare herself for fleeing if that person proves to be hostile. Her eyebrows come together and suddenly she has this feeling that she'll be able to punch someone after all.

And then there goes that auburn mess of hair again.

Takumi relaxes as Kiriyama wedges himself into the hole the same way she did earlier. "What are you doing here?" She asks as she crosses her arms over her chest. After all, there's no telling what she can say or do to him given her unstable emotional state.

He doesn't answer and instead, he closes the distance between them. He's visibly taller and she has to lift her chin just to show him that she isn't afraid of his eyes. Somehow, Kiriyama finds it to be quite amusing. Everything about Takumi amuses him.

When he provides no apparent answer for her, she turns and prepares to leave. His grip manifests around her wrist before she can even get through him. To her surprise, his grip is not bruising but containing. Containing in a sense that he's holding her but he's not invading her personal space at all. He's just holding her and not forcing her.

"What do you want?" She asks again but it's weaker than she intended it to be. She's feeling helpless again and she doesn't like it.

He changes his grip on her wrist and turns so his back is facing her. He pulls her away from the rusty signboard and leads her to the hole in the wire fence. Too weak to argue, Takumi lets him pull her out of the rooftop and to the alley below. The only time when he let go of her was when they were climbing down the ladder.

She doesn't trust Kiriyama; heck she doesn't want to have anything to do with him. But he's a good distraction so she lets him lead her out of the alley and to somewhere she's not familiar with. Her dad's call still clouds her mind.

Her dad called her before but she's never reacted this way to one meager phone call before. Maybe it's because she never expected it or maybe it's because he verbalized that he wants her to come back.

She hates him.

"I won't ask," she hears him say and though it's barely above a whisper, she knows what he said. His sudden concern evokes a small smile to bloom on her lips.

"You shouldn't," she says with a proud look on her face.

She comes to her senses a bit and sees that they're in the secluded area close to her home. A shiver runs down her spine but she successfully keeps it from her companion. "Where are we?" She asks though she's pretty sure that it's the area where the members of gangs lurk. The area is close to the residences so they lie in wait for an unlucky housewife or bread winner to rob.

Kiriyama seems to know this but he doesn't plan to stop. Takumi badly wants to turn around and run back, hoping that none of the resident robbers see her face and remember her. She tries to wrench her hand away from his confining grip, but it suddenly turns suffocating and she can only hope that her companion is in his right mind.

"Well look what we have here," a sleazy voice remarks, "two lovebirds looking for a place to cuddle."

The stench of alcohol and smoke emanates from them and Takumi just wants to recoil. She turns to Kiriyama but to her despair, his face remains impassive and inexpressive. There are three men before them; all are armed: one scrawny one with a lead pipe, a muscular one with a baseball bat and the neon pink haired one who looks like the leader of them.

"Wait, aren't you from the Kiriyama family?" The scrawny one asks. He stands up and picks up a piece of crumpled paper on the crate where he's been sitting on. He hands it to the neon haired one. "He's the one who's been disowned because he had issues."

"Issues huh?" The neon haired one's interest is piqued.

"What issues?" Takumi whispers as she turns to Kiriyama but his grip on her hand just tightens, like he's telling her to keep silent. So she does.

"If you've been disowned then it would be better if you're dead right?" The neon haired one's eyes narrow. "Maybe your dad will pay us for our services too." His eyes land on Takumi who's behind Kiriyama and hums suggestively. "A pretty girl you have there. You're planning to take her here and now? That's not very nice."

"Show him how it's done then," the scrawny one suggests. "She looks innocent enough."

The way they talk about her like she's not even there makes Takumi's ears ring violently. She clenches her free hand and thinks of a hundred ways she can kill the two.

The large one steps forward and looks down at Kiriyama; since he's a head taller, it isn't really a problem. He lets her hand go and Takumi clears away from him.

The large one swings his baseball club and Kiriyama's quick to move to the side and avoid him. The neon haired one wastes no time and lunges for Takumi while the one with the lead pipe serves as the leader's back up.

He manages to grab Takumi by the wrist. "How about we start with the basics? A French Kiss maybe?"

Those words struck a nerve in Takumi. "FRENCH KISS MY ASS!" She swings one leg and manages to kick him at his left side. The one with the lead pipe is quick to back the leader up. As the leader falls down, he raises the pipe to hit Takumi at the temple. She steps back a few steps so the edge of the lead pipe only catches the side of her forehead.

The one with the lead pipe falls back and smirks. "You should have taken the offer quietly instead of fighting back."

The neon haired one stands up and says, "I like feisty girls. When I'm done with you, you'll know what submission is."

She wipes off the blood dripping to her eyes and says, "I'm having a really bad day. First a jerk calls me and then this guy drags me here where guys like you are hanging around. Don't expect me to leave you with your facial bones intact."

Both men advance at her and Takumi is quick enough to distract them with her shoe sent flying to the neon haired one. He dodges of course but it's enough to make her focus on only the one with the lead pipe. Because the other he's is scrawny and rather predictable, she's able to grab the lead pipe and twist it out of his hand, but then the leader comes and charges at her with a tight fist.

As Takumi gets the lead pipe, she gets punched in the face by the neon haired one. She stumbles but keeps the lead pipe in her hands. It would be to her disadvantage if they managed to get that weapon as well.

"I like you better when you're down and defenseless…" the leader muses with a twisted smile and a suggestive lilt.

Takumi presses her free palm against the ground to stand up, only to be kicked in the shoulder by the scrawny one. She falls flat on her back and the leader advances on her again. This time she kicks him on the belly, just a few inches from his crotch, her original target. He stumbles but remains upright.

He curses at her and his hand shoots out to her neck. Takumi raises the lead pipe and he falls back. She scoffs at the sudden cowardly action. "What? Too scared of a feisty girl with a lead pipe?"

They hear a groan and they turn to the other side where the large muscular one with the baseball bat on the ground. His eyes are wide open, his left arm is twisted and his head is bleeding. Kiriyama is holding the baseball bat and has a busted lip. He catches Takumi's eye and smirks.

In retaliation, she rolls her eyes at him. She raises the pipe and rests it against her shoulder and asks, "Shall I come to you since that's what a feisty girl does? Or shall I wait like a submissive little girl?"

The leader turns to Kiriyama warily. If he's able to bring down a guy who's a head taller than him then the two of them don't stand a chance. Plus he's barely hurt.

"What do you two want?" The neon haired one asks.

Takumi tilts her head. "Are you giving up? We can't have that now, can we?" She follows his glare and says, "Stay away from this. They're mine."

As a sign of surrender, Kiriyama leans against the wall behind him with his hands in his pockets. He flashes a smile before his face reverts back to the impassive mask he had on earlier.

She turns back to the two before her. "So are you coming after me now?"

"You'll be coming when I'm done with you," the leader says.

The scrawny one goes after her and she readies the lead pipe. She's gripping it too tightly that her hand is already hurting but the adrenaline rush is too delectable to pass. She aims it for the crown of his head but then he sways to the side and behind him, the leader is poised to grab the other end of the lead pipe. Takumi struggles for the possession of the lead pipe until he wrenches it from her grip and throws it aside.

With a sadistic smile he says, "Nowhere to run now, missy." He revels in his 'victory' too much that he doesn't notice the fist that's going to collide with his nose. She punches his nose and feels extremely satisfied when she hears a subtle crack. The leader falls to his back and she straddles him. Her fist comes in contact with his face again and again and again. He tries to move his legs but the way Takumi straddles him occupies his perverted mind more so he just grabs her collar and tries to rip it off.

She's kicked in the side and Takumi falls on the ground. Her collar is nearly ripped off her blouse and her knees are red from all the friction. The neon haired one recovers and his face is nearly as pink as his hair.

"You don't know when to give up do you?" The leader sneers as he spits out the blood in his mouth.

She stands up only to be kicked in the stomach by the scrawny one. She falls on her side, clutching her stomach in pain. He may be scrawny but he sure has some strength in him. She gets lifted up by the shoulders and pressed against the wall behind her. The leader grabs her by the neck while the other one retreats to the crates and starts digging through the contents.

"Making your boyfriend stay away wasn't a very good choice, missy," he says and Takumi wants nothing more than to recoil at the stench of his breath: the scent of blood, smoke and bad breath all mixed together in one inconvenient location.

"He isn't my boyfriend…" she chokes out and claws his arm. His grip tightens and so does her windpipe. She tries to kick him but he suppresses her knees by closing the distance between them.

"Then I can have you all for myself…" he says as he pushes his face closer to hers.

"I don't think so…" Takumi smirks as she pokes both of his eyes with her index and middle fingers. He howls and shouts profanities at her as he completely moves away from her. She takes the chance to grab him by the nape and send his face to the wall behind her.

The scrawny one grabs his lead pipe and prepares to attack her to take advantage of her momentary disorientation, but then Kiriyama is quicker to act. He kicks the lead pipe out of the scrawny one's grip and in her anger; Takumi punches his nose the same way she did it to the leader. He falls to the ground.

"I guess he was just strong and not really enduring…" Takumi scoffs. She turns to Kiriyama who just asks her, "Better?"

Her eyes widen. "What are you taking about?" She frowns. Has she really been that transparent? No one's asked her if she had a problem, but then again no one cares for her anyway.

Kiriyama doesn't say a word and just stares at her with a look that says, 'I know you haven't been good.' Sighing, she nods. "I feel a whole lot better now…" she looks up to him with meek eyes. "Thank you, Kiriyama…"

He nods once before he looks down at her shoe-less right foot. He crouches down with his back against her. She stares at him and asks, "What are you doing?"

"You can't walk," he tells her and she seriously doubts that Kiriyama is a verbal type of person. Her pride gets the best of her and she declines by sidestepping him and walking off. The ground is cold and harsh against the fabric of her socks that have worn down through time. She hears Kiriyama stand after her and starts walking.

The scrawny one's fingers twitch and soon his entire hand starts moving. He gropes around and his fingers enclose around the handle of the rusty ice pick he'd dug out of the crate earlier. He presses his palms against the cemented ground and stands up shakily. With heavy yet silent breaths, he charges for Takumi whose back is turned against him.

With a loud profane word, he charges with the ice pick aimed for Takumi's back. But then she is pushed back and the red of blood flashes before her eyes. The ice pick's rusty tip is protruding from in between Kiriyama's index and middle fingers. The area starts bleeding and his stare turns deadly. His hand closes around the scrawny one's and he painfully clamps it.

"Let me go!" He exclaims with tears forming at the corners of his eyes. "Let me go, you bastard!"

Kiriyama's eyes turn sadistic as he presses his fist against the other one's hand harder. The scrawny one yelps and begs for mercy but his captor doesn't seem to have the intention of doing so. In a desperate attempt, he raises his fist and punches Kiriyama in the face but the latter isn't even fazed.

"Kiriyama," Takumi calls out as she tries to pull him away by the shoulder.

His face is hard as he slowly crushes the scrawny one's hand. With a loud howl, the bones of the scrawny one's hand breaks and the ice pick is stuck in between his broken fingers. Tears stream down his cheeks and Takumi steps back in horror. She grabs his shoulders again and pulls him away. "Kiriyama, stop it. We have to go."

"Don't do that again," he says threateningly to the pathetic mewling mess on the ground. Shaking the dripping blood off his hand, he crouches down with his back against Takumi. "Get on," he nearly hisses at her with his eyes still on the crumpled figure on the ground.

Too scared to even argue, Takumi obediently gets on his back. She wraps her arms around his neck and he holds her by the back of her knees. The wordlessly head out of the alley and back to the residential areas.

Kiriyama's cheek is swelling from the punch of the scrawny one. She feels the warm blood trickling through the back of her thighs, coming from Kiriyama's bleeding hand. Biting her lip, guilt hits her hard like a violent wave. He was trying to help her by bringing her to those thugs and channel out all of her frustration at them; although his idea was quite uncanny, it still made her feel better despite the injuries she obtained.

The least she could do is help him clean his wound.

"Kiriyama-kun," she forces the words out of her throat and they come out as a raspy whisper that she doubts he heard. Only when he slightly turns to her does she realize that he heard her. "Would you like to have dinner at my house tonight?"

It's an innocent offer but as soon as the words leave her mouth, she turns pink; pinker than the hair of the leader she'd just beat a while ago. "I mean…" she stammers "I haven't properly thanked you yet for… What I want to say is…"

"Yes."

And with that one word Takumi Naka is silent. Kiriyama turns ahead but she's sure she saw a ghost of a smile appearing on his lips before he turned away. She clenches her fist against the sleeve of her uniform; her wounds are staring to ache. The adrenaline rush is over.

But the thought of her father, wherever he is, calling because he wants her back is a million miles away. She's become aware that the stars are actually beautiful and the feeling of something aching on her forehead is oddly comforting. Kiriyama's back is suddenly very comfortable and his unpredictable actions are so endearing in a sense.

And Takumi Naka feels completely happy and at ease for once.

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**So did you understand why I enjoyed writing this chapter? =D**

**The fourth chapter is already on its way I just need to get my mind together so I can post it... =D I'm still spazzing about a certain someone's fanfic and a certain Korean boy group's new MV... (*cough* Growl *cough* EXO *cough*) =D**

**Anyway please do REVIEW and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated... **

**Thanks for reading!**

**God bless!**

**chquine_harvinelliesse**


	5. Chapter 4

**OH MY GOSH! How long has it been since I last updated? =D**

**Anyway... I grant you with... (drum roll) TWO CHAPTERS! /confetti/**

**This chapter is a bit drabble-ish... And I don't know why... HAHA! =D**

**Yeah I'm too happy... =D**

**Anyway, enjoy! =D**

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Chapter 4

Dinner and Mornings

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To say that Takumi has a problem would be an understatement.

She invited Kiriyama Kazuo for dinner into her house but she never considered that she doesn't have anything to feed him with. With an exasperated sigh, she collapses on the dining chair. Her refrigerator is empty and all of her groceries have been used. In short she has nothing to feed her guest.

Except for the sushi she always loved. Having no other choice, Takumi placed the plate of assorted sushi into the microwave. Glancing at her hand, she sees dried blood and is reminded of her injuries as well as Kiriyama's. She heads up the stairs and grabs the first aid kit box hanging from the wall; when she comes back down, the sushi has been reheated. She puts them on a plate and prepares the soy sauce and wasabi dip. She heads to the living room where Kiriyama is looming over the photo in the frame atop the coffee table beside the television.

Clearing her throat, Takumi places the plate on the table. She awkwardly wipes her hands on the sides of her skirt. "I should treat your wounds first…" she says rather shyly.

Kiriyama puts the picture frame down and sits on the comfy cotton sofa. They sit motionlessly and she feels like she's in a foreign place and not her own home. After a good five minutes of complete and absolute silence, Takumi clears her throat again. "Your hand should go first," she says and makes a move to take it but to her surprise, he puts it on her lap.

Takumi swallows at the rather huge gash that formed a large V. Thankfully; she brought anti-tetanus to come with her first aid kit. The ice pick the thug used was rusty after all. She disinfects her hand with alcohol and pours an adequate amount of anti-tetanus onto the cotton ball. She gently dabs it on the gash and blows on it before repeating the process all over again. He doesn't seem to be fazed by the sting or he's just really good at hiding his emotions. After disinfecting it, she covers it with some gauze and tapes it in place.

Kiriyama's cheek is starting to swell so Takumi stands to get an ice pack ready. She notes the busted lip and decides to save it for later. She is stopped however when he takes the first aid kit and says "Stay here."

There is something about his voice that makes her unable to do anything but just obey. Is it because he's obviously stronger than her and that she doesn't stand a chance against him? Is it because he doesn't speak much? Is it because he intimidates her?

Shaking her head, Takumi clears her head of those thoughts. He can't intimidate her. He _isn't _supposed to intimidate her. She's Takumi Naka and Takumi Naka doesn't get intimidated.

Then again who is Takumi Naka compared to Kiriyama Kazuo, who happens to be the missing son of some rich widower? If what those thugs said about Kiriyama is right then perhaps she really is intimidated by him. His seemingly soulless eyes and his abilities and strengths that she can't even begin to fathom are frightening. To be honest, she doesn't even know him at all; how can she not be intimidated by him?

If what those thugs said a while ago is true, that Kiriyama is the missing son of _the _Kiriyama, the rich widower, then Takumi needs to seriously stop underestimating him all the time.

"Is it true?" She murmurs as she disinfects his hands with alcohol. "Are you the missing Kiriyama kid?"

"It doesn't matter," he says as he pours some antiseptic onto a cotton ball and pushes his face close to hers. He brushes off the fringe that's covering the cut caused by the lead pipe. He gently dabs it onto the cut and Takumi flinches. He stops and blows onto the wounded area; effectively soothing the stinging pain. Her eyes are trained to the ground. Somehow she feels ashamed of asking the question in the first place.

He dresses her forehead with gauze and pulls away to examine his work. He turns to the first aid kit and grabs Takumi by the ankle. She twitches away from him and he notices. Meeting her eyes, he puts her legs on the sofa. Again she is rendered powerless with his intense gaze. Sighing, she lets him do the same to her other leg. Her knees are red and feel raw; there's a trail of dried blood at the underside of her calf.

Standing up, Kiriyama asks, "Where is the ice pack?"

"It's in the fridge."

With a curt nod, he leaves for the kitchen. Takumi glances at the plate of sushi on the table. She shouldn't have reheated it when she did. She can only hope that her companion likes cold sushi like her.

Kiriyama comes back with two ice packs. She used to stumble a lot and her knees would get bruised often, so she kept two ice packs in the fridge for instances like that. He presses one against his cheek and puts the other one of her knee. She hisses at the sudden contact but the ice pack gradually did its magic. Soon she's lying down, with her hand on the armrest of the sofa; forcing him to vacate to the floor.

He's staring at her. She notices and asks, "What?"

With one swift move, he grabs the hem of her school blouse and lifts it up. She's quick to sit up to keep him from doing anything more, but not quick enough for him to see a bruise forming on her side and her stomach.

Immediately, Takumi pushes her blouse down and mutters "Pervert."

For some reason, he finds her flustered face and her seemingly defeated countenance amusing. She glares at him and he looks away. The sushi on the plate is cold but he takes one anyway. She, on the other hand, resumes her original position and clears her throat.

"Do you really not want to tell me?" She asks. Although her actions seem to be a bit overstepping, even for her, she's still curious and like any normal human being, she'd like her curiosity to be fed.

He doesn't answer. Instead, he grabs another sushi and puts it into his mouth. It's stale and nearly tasteless but still, his stomach is complaining so his taste buds will have to be compromised. "I'd have to kill you," he says succinctly.

A scoff and then, "It's not like I care about my life. No one wants me around."

He gives her a look that tells her that he doesn't believe her; to that she only shrugs. "It's the truth."

"Your parents?"

Though it's a far cry from a truly decent question, his responses are still better than nothing. "My mom's dead. My dad remarried a pimp and got himself a son," she said bitterly. Closing her eyes, Takumi shifts so her back is flat against the comfy cushion of the sofa.

"My dad had an affair when I was nine. My mom died after they separated because she was sick," Takumi says. "It was horrible. I ran away from home because my dad wanted me to marry the son of his business partner."

Kiriyama doesn't make any indication to answer and he just continues to eat the cold sushi on the plate. He's halfway to finishing the serving, Takumi notes and it makes her smile a bit. She leans back again and puts the ice pack on the other knee.

"This is nice," she muses out loud.

She hears him chuckle and somehow, she finds comfort in the smallest indication that he's listening. She's been living alone for a while and having someone who could at least _listen_ to her made her feel better. She initially thought that Kiriyama wouldn't be someone who'd make her feel better because he's already made her feel weak and small. But then his silence seems to be a lot better than soothing or sympathizing words.

After all, Takumi Naka doesn't need sympathy.

She sits up and grabs a sushi from the plate. She pops it into her mouth and chews. The rice has become loose, the cucumber and nori are hard to chew and all in all, it tastes a bit sour, but a smile still spreads on her face.

Kiriyama definitely deserves honorifics.

"Kiriyama-kun," she calls him. When he turns his head to her, she continues with a bow of her head, "Thank you."

Once again the eccentric one presents her with a ghost of a smile before he inclines his head a bit to voice out his answer. Then he turns back and eats the remaining sushi that could possibly be already rotten.

* * *

"Did you get into a fight yesterday, Takumi-san?"

Said girl fidgets in her worn out office seat in the Disciplinary head's office. When students misbehave or get into fights, they don't get sent to the principal's office. The Disciplinary committee takes care of the 'dirty work' inside the school.

Takumi wasn't with Kiriyama when she came to school, so she was pressed into coming with the head to report what had happened to her forehead. The gauze was quite difficult to hide after all. She hoped she could tell the head that she just bumped her head on the door but then she figured that if Kiriyama came with injuries as well, then her alibi would be suspicious. The Disciplinary committee members associate Takumi and Kiriyama to be in the same crowd after all.

'Takumi-san," the strict-looking, yet not-nearly-intimidating head calls again. "Did you get into a fight?"

She has to stall him. She has to stall him long enough for her to think of another possible alibi. Raising her chin, she asks, "Why do you ask that?"

"You are a troublemaker, Takumi-san," he responds and Takumi could curse at him if she weren't in this situation. "So that possibility is always at the top of my list; you aren't known for your weak and feeble image after all."

"Who says weak and feeble ones can't fight?" She scoffs.

"I meant fight in the literal sense, like you," he remedies. "Either way, we aren't here to discuss your views on such topics, so please answer the question."

She puts up her unconscious defense tactic: folding her arms across her chest. "Why should I?"

He sighs wearily. "If you don't answer then you'll be stuck in my office all day. I for one am not fond of having people stay in my office for extended periods of time."

She shrugs. "I don't mind. Your office is nice and cozy, unlike the boring and stale classroom we're forced to stay in."

"Takumi-san, I don't have time to waste."

"I don't care. Besides, I'm starting to like your office."

The argument is dragging on and the head doesn't like it. He's starting to forget why he dragged her in his office in the first place. Her tenacity and her stubbornness appeals to him in more ways than one. The slope of her nose is quite attractive and the gentle sharpness of her cheekbones defines just how independent and strong she is. Her eyes are hypnotizing and alluring. Lastly, her smell, it torments him and goads him.

She smells like cheap shampoo and subtle roses.

And he finds that rather arousing.

Of course it is needless to say that to him, Takumi Naka is already attractive.

The fact that she's completely oblivious of his erotic problems makes being alone with him all the more dangerous.

She crosses her legs and asks, "What? Have you run out of threats, Chairman-san?"

With a frustrated growl, he pushes himself out of his chair and walks towards her. He slams a hand on the desk in front of Takumi and says, "Don't test me, Takumi Naka…"

Raising a brow, Takumi taunts, "What are you going to do, Chairman-san?"

As of then, he could think of a hundred and one things that he can and would do to Takumi Naka. He raises his hand to hit the unflinching girl sitting clueless on one of the many chairs in his office. His emotions and desires stir violently in his stomach and he wants nothing more than to be allowed to yield.

He his halfway from meeting her cheek when the door slides open and a groan is heard from there. Both heads turn to see Kiriyama grabbing one of the committee members by the collar of his uniform. The committee member is on the ground and his face is bleeding in various areas. Judging by the way he's holding the more pitiful one, Kiriyama must have dragged the poor guy: four flights of stairs and half a hall included.

"Chairman…" he whimpers pathetically.

"What is this?"

"Kiriyama-kun,"

At the sound of his name, Kiriyama smirks. He throws the subordinate to the ground and strides forward towards Takumi. The Chairman is dumbstruck. He knows that he can't do anything against Kiriyama Kazuo. The silent pupil is mysterious and judging by the state his subordinate is in, the former has hidden strengths that can be meddlesome to deal with.

Kiriyama grabs Takumi by the wrist and she stands up. His grip is merely containing; she notes that.

"Takumi-san is not yet done with her-,"

"Shameful…"

With that one word, the head of the Disciplinary committee falls silent. He could have retaliated and he could have denied it, but the look in Kiriyama's eyes is telling him that both of those actions are futile.

She turns to Kiriyama with a questioning look on her face and asks, "What are you talking about?"

He scoffs and pulls her out of the office. She protests and fights but his grip suddenly turns suffocating; it's then that she learns that she should not fight him anymore.

"Where are we going?" She asks when they pass the gate of the school. The Disciplinary committee does nothing to stop them from leaving the school premises. The morning classes are still in session after all. The school is not in sight anymore; they're at road hill that will lead to the residential areas. The only thing that keeps the entire scene from being desolate is the presence of fences trees and occasional shrubs that were planted by the former classes of their school.

At the exact middle of the road, they stop. Takumi looks around and sees no vehicles heading their way. "What's wrong?" She asks him. "We have morning classes…"

Instead of responding, he just stands there with his head towards the ground. She stares at him. "Kiriyama-kun."

"Breakfast," he whispers loud enough for her to hear.

"What?"

He turns to her with a somewhat crazed look on his face and replies, "Breakfast."

She flinches at the look that quickly passes his face and just nods. "Okay… Breakfast it is then." By now, she knows more than to oppose someone like Kiriyama Kazuo.

He drags her out of the hill and Takumi feels nothing more than a rag doll pulled by a jerky kid. She wants to tell him to slow down because her shoes are barely touching the ground with every stride. She wants to tell him to ease his grip on her wrist because she can't feel her hand anymore. She wants to tell him to stop scowling like he wants to kill every single person in the shopping district because the infuriating smirk suits him a whole lot more.

But even Takumi Naka can't manage that feat.

They stop at a small ramen stand. She sits on the bench facing the foldable table covered in worn out linoleum. On the cart itself is the deep stove where only half of the steel pot is seen. The middle-aged lady behind the cart smiles warmly at Kiriyama and his companion. She also notices how he is holding Takumi's wrist tightly.

"Kiriyama-kun, it's rare to see you with someone," she says as she crouches down to get a bowl. When she comes up, she's also holding a container for the uncooked noodles. "Don't you have school today?"

Kiriyama shakes his head. "Skipped…"

Her lips curl in distaste and if she didn't address Kiriyama as 'Kiriyama-kun' when they arrived, Takumi would have thought that she's his mom. She puts the noodles in the strainer and clucks her tongue as she dips the strainer into the boiling broth. "You shouldn't skip classes. You might end up like me if you neglect your studies." She adds another strainer of noodles into the broth and whispers, "If you don't get picked for the BR act that is…"

"Yes?" Takumi asks.

The older woman shakes her head and says, "Nothing. Anyway, are you Kiriyama-kun's girlfriend?"

"No," she denies too quickly for her taste. "To be truthful, he just dragged me here for breakfast," she jerks her thumb towards Kiriyama who's at her right. "He made a scene with the Disciplinary committee member…"

"Ah…" she says, unsurprised; as if that kind of scenario is but normal for Kiriyama. "Given Kiriyama-kun's strength, I wouldn't really be surprised. He once drove away all of the hooligans hanging around here. There were eight of them and he took them all out single-handedly."

Somehow, Takumi isn't all that surprised that he could take on eight all at once, but then she never thought that he'd be the type to help people.

She emerges the strainers from the broth and shakes them a bit; afterwards she puts them in the bowls, fills it with soup and the other ingredients such as the barbecued pork, the nori slices and the fishcakes. She slides the bowls to them and says, "Enjoy the meal!"

Kiriyama hands Takumi the chopsticks and he breaks his. She follows his example and they start eating the ramen in silence. The cart owner excused herself for a bit because of a sudden phone call.

"I never thought you actually go to places like these," she mutters as she picks the fishcakes with her chopsticks.

He merely shrugs and continues eating his ramen. His lack of response doesn't surprise her anymore and she's learned that she appreciates the silence. She continues eating her ramen when a thought strikes her.

"Why did you bring me here anyway?" She asks. "And how did you know I was in the Disciplinary committee room?"

He doesn't reply and minutes pass so Takumi gives up. The owner comes back and says, "Kiriyama-kun, aren't you going to get sick if you keep eating here?"

He glances at her and shakes his head.

"You come here for dinner every single time and now you come for breakfast too?" The owner says exasperatedly. "Could you please tell this boy to eat something else?"

"Don't you eat breakfast at home?" Takumi asks Kiriyama only to earn a gesture of negation from him.

"What about lunch?"

She receives the same answer.

"You only eat ramen for dinner?"

He nods.

The owner holds up three fingers to indicate three bowls of ramen.

Takumi is torn between breaking into laughter and scolding him for being so negligent of his own needs.

She punches him on the shoulder. "You know my house right?"

Kiriyama nods.

"Go there every morning…" she smiles at him. "There'll be breakfast…"

He smiles at her: a smile that tugs on both corners of his lips and makes his eyes glow in the morning sunlight.

Takumi is left speechless. Since when did he seem so bright? Wasn't he a dark and mysterious persona? How did he become so… fitting with the sunlight?

Then again, she can't expect anything less from the unpredictably spontaneous Kiriyama. She's sure that she misjudged him. She's sure that his inexpressive eyes of void mean no harm. It's just probably how he is; she was just too prejudiced or relied too much on manga characters she often saw.

She returns the gesture and is all the more surprised when he props his right arm on the makeshift table and rests his chin on his palm. He gazes into her and it makes her feel smaller. She visibly shrinks in her seat and the stall owner is thankfully quiet. Otherwise the situation would be more awkward.

"I look forward to it, Takumi Naka…"

His voice is so smooth and velvety. She never thought that Kiriyama Kazuo would be capable of such a… charming combination. Maybe he unnerved her too much that she couldn't find it in her to admit his charm. Maybe she was too pre-occupied by his gazes and his unpredictable actions to think of anything else that came with the package.

She's sure she's blushing. Thankfully, he pulls away and continues eating his ramen. The mocking smile on his face mirrors his inner joy.

In retaliation, Takumi socks his head from behind, making him dunk his face into the ramen he's eating.

**So how was it? Horrible no? =D**

**Anyway please do not hesitate to click the REVIEW button and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated... =D**

**Thanks for reading! =D**

**chquine_ harvinellisse**


	6. Chapter 5

**So this is the second chapter...**

**Since festivals are a common thing in Japanese-themed movies... I hereby present you one! =D**

**Enjoy! =D**

* * *

Chapter 5

Festivals and Costumes

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It's seven in the morning and only an hour left before classes start. Takumi is in her uniform and over it is a blue apron. She puts the last of the pancakes on the plate and on the table afterwards. Kiriyama usually comes at 7:15 and she knows that now after three weeks of being his breakfast cook.

Her gaze is directed towards the calendar mounted beside the refrigerator. The date is encircled in a red circle, indicating that there's something important happening. She turns off the stove and comes closer to the calendar.

"School Festival planning…" Her eyes widen. "What?"

She checks the date on her phone and it matches the encircled date. "It's happening today?" If there's one thing that Takumi doesn't like about her school, other than her teachers and shallow classmates, it's their festival preparations. Last year she was forced to wear a bunny girl's suit, complete with the bunny ears and the stockings. She had to wait outside of their movie theater and encouraged people to come in. Though thanks to her efforts, their class made three times more money than anyone else, making them the festival class. Half of the money was given to her and she was forced to spend it to treat her classmates as per tradition. In the end she got enough money to buy herself a new phone.

She'd rather not be faced with that kind of embarrassing situation again. Then again, with the type of classmates she has, there's no telling what they can think of doing and what they can press her into doing. In her entire class, Takumi has been labeled as the prettiest one; none of her other female classmates contest to that because if they try to claim the title, they'll have to do the things that Takumi does, like being the bunny usher outside their movie house.

She sighs and suddenly there's a knock on her door. She checks the clock and sees that it's 7:15; Kiriyama's arrival. Taking off her apron, Takumi heads to the door and opens it for Kiriyama. He goes in and takes off his shoes before entering the threshold. "Good morning…" He says; that's new because he rarely greets her. He rarely speaks to her at all.

"Did you eat something weird last night?" She asks playfully. "You're greeting me…"

He waves her off and that makes her pout. He heads to the dinning area and sits down his chair; there are only two of them on both sides of the table after all. Takumi never intended to have more than one guest after all.

Takumi takes the spot across him and sighs. She folds her hands together and he follows her example. "Itadakimasu…" the mutter in unison, but Kiriyama's is quieter.

They start eating the pancakes quietly. The sound of the cutlery hitting the plate and the others is the only thing heard in the silent dinning room. Takumi decides to bring up the topic of the school festival planning. Surely even someone like him would be concerned. He came from the star section after all; last year they arranged a café. One of the students there had a real café so they didn't have that much of a problem. The twist was: it's a cosplay café based on Starcraft, so the students had to dress as Zergs because dressing up as Terrans or Protosses would be boring. They had no problem in that too because another one of the students provided cosplay outfits.

Imagining Kiriyama Kazuo in a Zerg's outfit is quite amusing and she couldn't help but snort. He glances at her and she merely shrugs innocently. "By the way, today is the festival planning day, right?" She asks with a knowing glint in her eyes.

He just stares at her before he smirks. "Horror house…" he mutters. "Our class… Horror house…"

His sentence is a bit incoherent but Takumi gets it well. "Our class is doing a horror house?!" She bursts out. How could Kiriyama who isn't even a member of their class for a long time know when she, who is probably the one with the largest role in their activities, doesn't? It seems hardly possible. She thinks then; either she's the main attraction, a white lady or an usher again? But how can you make people come in a horror house? It's nearly impossible.

She slumps and remorsefully eats her pancakes. The mere thought of being the main attraction of a horror house is enough to dampen her mood. Then again, when has she ever been happy during mornings? She sighs and asks, "Did they tell you anything about my role in the horror house?"

He replies with a knowing smirk on his face. He shrugs and chomps down the last of his pancake. He helps himself with some grapefruit juice that Takumi never bothered to taste. It doesn't matter to him; he likes it anyway. She's grateful in a way that someone will finally consume that bottle of grapefruit juice in her refrigerator.

She glowers at him for a bit before finishing her pancakes as well. As per usual, she drinks milk after breakfast so Kiriyama pours her a glass. She grabs the glass with a look of contempt on her face. He potentially knows what's to be her role in the horror house and he won't tell her. Gulping it down, Takumi glances at the clock and sees that she needs to hurry.

Thankfully, Kiriyama notices her hurry and puts toothpaste on her toothbrush before she can finish her milk. He does the same for his toothbrush that was from a hotel he stayed in before. They quickly brush their teeth and put the plates on the sink. Takumi always washes her dishes after school.

Their morning routine has always been like this since Takumi's bold invitation three weeks ago. She would cook them breakfast; it's a different one everyday, depending on her mood or the capability of her stored groceries. After that, Kiriyama would drink his daily glass of grapefruit juice and pour her a glass of milk while he's at it. When he's done with his juice, he puts toothpaste on both of their toothbrushes. Depending on who's faster, that person gets to put the dishes in the sink. After that, he gets their school bags and they head out.

To an innocent passerby that happens to live in the same neighborhood, they look like a couple, a couple that share breakfast and leave for school together. Some of the housewives have made them a topic of their daily gossips. Takumi was never friendly to the neighbors; they never knew where she was from or who her parents were. All the local people knew was that Takumi is an unruly child that is probably doing inappropriate things with her boyfriend.

She never hears the gossips though; Kiriyama's presence is enough to ward off all of those gossips. They are, in a nutshell, intimidated by Kiriyama; even more than their intimidation for Takumi.

They take the normal route: the residential area, the road hill past it and the school walkway. The Disciplinary chairman steps aside at their entrance; in turn his lackeys follow after him. For some reason, the scene in the Disciplinary committee room three weeks ago made the chairman more lax on the two of them. It's a bit strange for Takumi at first, especially since she tried so many stunts just to get past them. But as the days passed, she got used to it; she found out that she likes it. The main reason is Kiriyama, but she doesn't really care.

They head to class silently. Sulkily, she gets to her chair and he sits on the chair behind her. Their classmates are not in their usual mood. Everybody's quiet and it's bizarre for their class. Most of the times, the vain girls do nothing but chatter about their hair and appearance but they never try to get the title that's Takumi's; it would require 'sacrificing the nail art'. The loud good-for-nothings talk about the latest in gadgets or games and whatnot. But today, they're silent; sullen even. Takumi suspects that someone died.

Then the bouncy class president arrives spinning in. Her hair is in curls and her eyes twinkle with merriment. It is needless to say that she's prepared entirely for the festival all by herself. In a section like hers after all, the president's orders are absolute, otherwise, you think of something better. So far her idea has been successful: a bunny girl as an usher for their movie house; the entire class didn't even have to participate at all. This time is different though.

"Alright!" She slams a hand on the table. "You all look like you've been to a funeral and that's good!" Her pitch is high and unlikely given the atmosphere of the room. "You're all getting into character then!"

The entire class groans in unison. "President, can't we lay off the horror house please?" One male student asks. "It's disgusting!" A female student protests. "Can't we just do the movie house with Takumi as the bunny usher again?"

This angers the said girl. "Shut up! You didn't do anything in that concept!"

"Exactly," the president snaps her fingers. "The only ones that participated in the movie house were me, Takumi-chan and the former secretary. We won, yes, but it was more of our efforts. I doubt any of you went to school that day too. Don't worry. I've revised a shifting schedule so all of us can enjoy the festival at a time," she finishes brightly as she unravels her rolled up piece of A4 paper. It reveals a very pale face with full bangs and long black hair. Only a small part of the kimono's neck is seen. The kimono is blue inside and white on the outside.

"This is our flyer," she announces. "Our horror house's theme is a mental hospital wing. I've already reserved three rooms for this purpose: this room and the two other rooms ahead," she points to the wall across her with her baton. "As you all know, the room ahead is a lab and the room beside that is a vacant room so if you have any ideas on how we can renovate those so those rooms can at least look like a haunted mental hospital wing, then don't be shy…" she smiles brightly but the life-threatening aura around her is unmistakable. "If you don't want to dress in a Zerg outfit for the rest of the year then I suggest you speak up. I managed to get one from the star section after all."

The class shudders. They all know that the president is always serious and what she says goes. Otherwise you need to give a better idea.

"Okay!" She pumps a fist in the air and continues. "Our horror house has a story and if we weren't scaring the people going in, they'd notice that. It starts with a woman," she points to the face on the flyer. "The woman is locked inside the mental institution after she got raped by her step-father. She gets pregnant by one of the patients and her step-father, thinking that the child is his, got rid of her child. Her mind gets twisted for real and she tries to escape, but she's detained. Her step father comes back and the crazy woman, thinking that her child is with the man, asks for her child. In truth the step-father just went there to get rid of her and the entire mental institution. Everybody in the mental institution dies and the woman tries to escape. She gets hit by a truck and dies from euthanasia courtesy of the truck driver. Her soul still seeks her child and she asks people to help her find her child. She leads them to the mental institution where other souls are waiting to haunt…"

When she finishes, the entire class is silent. The president attaches the flyer on the blackboard with a pushpin. She smiles and says, "Like always, Takumi-chan will be the main. No one wants to do it after all. Now the problem is the psychopath that impregnated our main." She picks up a paper from her table, the list of names, and says, "None of you can act properly so we have a problem…"

"Why put such a guy in the first place?" One of the male students asks.

"Because I want to," the president replies simply. "It adds the twist and it fits. I wrote the story myself so no one has the right to complain, unless of course you have a better idea. I stayed up all night conceptualizing everything and even making a sample flyer," she presses her baton against the flyer on the blackboard. She looks over the list again and says, "None of you would volunteer but then again, none of you fit the description." She sighs and puts the paper down. "If only we knew how a psychopath acts, this would be easier…"

"Why is it so specific?" Another student asks.

"Well because it sounds fancy… Psychopath…" she replies simply. "Besides, I heard psychopaths are very manipulative; it fits in my scenario doesn't it?"

All protests and questions die down and they mutter among themselves. Whispers of, "You do it!" Or "You do the character that rapes Takumi!"

The president shushes them all as she taps her baton on the table. "Shut up! Won't anyone volunteer to be the psychopath and while you're at it? Study how a psychopath reacts. Don't make me pick someone, because if I do you know you won't like it; not one bit." Her voice turns sinister at the end and the males inside the room start pushing one another into the role.

"Why does the psychopath have to rape Takumi?"

The president scoffs. "It's just a story! You're not really going to rape Takumi-chan! It's just a stupid role! Man up and take it! Damn these useless boys…"

Noises continue ringing in the room and Takumi prefers the silence when they went inside over this noisy mess. The president is right: it's just a role; it's just a story. The people who'll be going inside their horror house won't notice the story anyway. What's the big deal? She sighs and buries her face in her hands. At least she doesn't have to face their Physics teacher and kill herself with the formulas.

Suddenly the class falls silent. Takumi looks up to see that all of her classmates are looking at her, no, behind her. Kiriyama is the only person behind her and she wonders why they're all looking at him with dropped jaws and wide eyes. Even the president's face mirrors extreme shock. She looks behind and sees Kiriyama raising his hand.

He meets the president's eyes and says, "I'll do it…"

And for a few seconds that seemed like hours, the entire class was silent. The president squeals in glee and produces her pen from her breast pocket. She pushes the end and makes the ball point come out. She scribbles something at the back of the paper that has the list of the names of the students in her section. "Then, Kiriyama-chan, you and Takumi-chan are both exempted from the props-making drama." The entire class groans at that. The guys ask why the president didn't mention that earlier.

"If I did that, then all of you would volunteer and probably boycott," the president folds her arms across her chest. "I know your attitudes. This happened last year in our movie house. I also implemented shifting there but none of the volunteers came. This year, to make sure that none of you boycott, I coordinated with our adviser, the History pig and he agreed that whoever boycotts will fail this year."

Dread is evident on the faces of each and every one of the students.

"That's right. You'll be repeaters if you boycott. Plus, I heard there are other Zerg suits that the star section saved from last year. The Disciplinary chairman is a good friend of mine so I'm sure he can make you ungrateful skippers a special place in his exemption list."

The scary thing about their president is that she has plenty of connections with people inside the school. If she wants to manipulate you into participating in the renovation of the rooms to turn it to a haunted mental institution wing, then she will. The Zerg costume and the guaranteed spot in repeating are present. She smiles and says, "Questions?"

The entire class shakes its head. Takumi smirks. "Aren't you being a psychopath, president?" She mutters.

"Good!" She smiles as she puts her baton down. "Kiriyama-chan, Takumi-chan, would it be alright if you two take care of your own costumes?"

"What?" Takumi asks.

"Well… I'm not sure our class funds can shoulder your costumes. Actually, it's not enough to cover anything except for the flyers. So the money we'll be using for props will be coming from my pocket." She grabs her baton and points it to every single person inside the room. "So don't you even _think_ about boycotting and skipping, you ungrateful males! As for the others' costumes, one of us has connections with someone who can patch something up for us. So that takes care of everything. Questions?"

"What kind of costumes will we need?" Takumi raises her hand.

The president taps her baton on her chin and says, "Well… since you're wearing a kimono in the flyers, you should wear one. The undercoat is blue and the overcoat is white. As for the other details, it doesn't matter as long as it's the first two requirements. As for Kiriyama-chan patient clothes will be fine. You know those pajamas that are loose and dull? That'll do. Oh and," she waltzes to her bag and takes out a folder. She hands them to Takumi and says, "That's the script draft I wrote last night. It'll help both of you get in character."

The president winks at Takumi and the latter chuckles. Their president is definitely someone of admirable and commendable character. She's always been favorable towards Takumi, probably because the latter never complains even though she's been faced with a really embarrassing situation in the previous year.

"Alright, alright!" The president announces. "Let's all get to work! All of you, except Kiriyama-chan and Takumi-chan, start listing places where we can buy our materials. Start conceptualizing the layout of the rooms too. Remember, the room next to this is a laboratory, so we need to do something to make it look like it's a part of our entire area!"

The president keeps on demanding things from her classmates and Kiriyama simply sits on Takumi's desk, his back leaning against the windowsill.

* * *

After classes, Takumi and Kiriyama head to the nearest boutique, which is actually a train away. At first she protests; her monthly salary is only enough to cover her daily expenses and her bills. Adding an expensive item, like an article of clothing, on her list might leave her penniless. Kiriyama flashes his credit card then and she turns silent. She treads light-heartedly as he nearly drags her to the boutique that's in the more luxurious part of Tokyo. It is needless to say that Takumi definitely feels smaller and less-significant in this part of the neighborhood.

"Do you have any idea where we're going?" She asks her silent companion.

He doesn't reply and instead he turns at an alley; hereby forcing her to follow him. He stops in front of a glass door with gold handles carved with vines and roses. There is a sign above the doors on a shiny purple plate and written in gold fancy English letters, 'Tailored to Fit". The name in itself threatens Takumi to go back home but then Kiriyama grabs her by the wrist again. It's the grip that tells her she has no choice, so she surrenders.

The bell above the door rings and the shop-keeper, a woman dressed in a simple blue dress and a lavish maroon scarf, turns to them with a smile. She recognizes Kiriyama and says, "It's been a long time since you last came here."

He bows politely and a small smile plays on his lips. He gestures to Takumi who's awed behind him.

"Ah, I see you've brought a girl with you," her tone turns suggestive. She places a hand on Takumi's shoulder and leads her to the fitting rooms. "Kazuo has given me the description of the kimono you need. I've sketched it and made a rough output. Of course, the final output will be finer, so worry not." She swishes back a red curtain to reveal a barely-made white kimono on a headless mannequin. The contrast of the navy blue undergarment is visible against the stark white; the obi is the same color as the undergarment.

At that moment Takumi doesn't know if she'll be overwhelmed by the white of the kimono or she'll be surprised by the fact that this woman dressed in luxury addresses Kiriyama by his first name. The older woman crosses her arms on her chest and says, "If only that child gave me more time, I would have finished this. Old habits die hard, I suppose…" she steps aside and asks, "Will you try it on please? There are still some protruding pins, so be careful."

Nodding once, Takumi is left alone with the kimono on the mannequin. It somehow feels like she'll ruin the sheer whiteness of the cloth if she wears it. The light coming from the chandelier makes the kimono shine; she's suddenly so conscious of herself. Nonetheless, she wears it, avoiding the needles just like she was instructed to. The sleeves are only half-sewn so they open awkwardly to reveal her elbows. She comes out to where the woman is talking with Kiriyama.

The older woman smiles at her as she comes out. "It fits you perfectly. I just need to finish the sleeves and you'll be fine. It's for a festival right?"

Takumi nods. "I don't think this is really necessary though," she says while trying to be respectful. "I'm just going to be a ghost that will be running around our campus. It would be a waste to wear this just for that day."

The older woman waves her off. "That's not true. Clothes are never wasted as long as you don't waste them. You could be going to a festival as a ghost but that doesn't mean that this kimono will be wasted on you."

Still she isn't convinced. Nodding, Takumi just says, "It's very wonderfully made."

"That's because a dear friend's son asked me to do it for him," she smiles. "I'll finish it before the festival along with Kazuo's hospital clothes."

She nods again before she goes back to where she dressed. This time, the older woman follows her as far as behind the curtain. "Please take care of Kazuo," the she says and when Takumi answers her with silence, she continues, "He's a very lonely child and I can see that you're a person of importance to him."

Takumi silently changes her clothes and asks, "How long have you known him?"

"Not really him. I knew his mother," the older woman replies. "His mother and I were college friends; she came here often. Kazuo was just a little kid then and he didn't like going here but he was informed to go here if he needed clothes. And he did." There's a chuckle at the end of her voice. "Those were good times."

It feels wrong for her to ask but she does anyway. "Where's his mother now?"

She turns silent. "I'd rather you ask him yourself. I don't feel good about telling you something that touches his past. Are you done?"

"Yes…" Takumi replies as she hands the kimono to her. "Thank you very much."

The older woman nods and puts the kimono on the mannequin. "It's my pleasure."

They get out and see Kiriyama looking over a sleeveless purple dress. It's on a mannequin like most of the displays and it ornamented with nothing but a chained diamond hovering over the breastbone. The older woman chuckles and says, "Still reminiscing about your mother's work?"

He turns to her and offers a nod. "I can't sell it," she says. "I'm waiting for you to take it back."

"I will," he says shortly, "but not now." He bows and heads for the door. Takumi follows his example before leaving as well.

"Did she tell you anything?" Kiriyama asks as they walk out of the alley and head to the station.

Feeling rather small, she nods before answering. "Yes… She said that she's a friend of you mom. And she told me to take care of you." She ponders on the words for a moment before saying, "I don't understand why I have to take care of you. You can perfectly take care of yourself."

He smirks at her and chuckles. "Don't mind it…"

"You're speaking a lot today," she comments.

At that he falls silent. "I'll tell you everything… Someday maybe, but not now…"

The atmosphere between them is heavy. Whether is has something to do about him being the missing son of _the_ Kiriyama or the whereabouts of his mom, she knows it's something that's heavy and he doesn't want to completely talk about it. Takumi isn't stupid. Everybody has a part of their past and their lives that they're not proud of.

"It's alright if you don't want to talk about it," she tells him. "If it makes you uncomfortable then it's alright."

He sniggers at that. "I don't feel that. I don't feel a lot of things; I used to feel nothing at all until recently."

She stops in her tracks and stares at Kiriyama as he walks forward. He turns back to her with a questioning look on his face. "You don't mean that, don't you?" She asks him half-fearfully. She doesn't know what he fully means but it sounds really drastic.

He gives her a half smile before purposefully walking towards her and, surprisingly, gently takes her by the wrist. "There are more frightening things about Kiriyama Kazuo," he says. "But now, he's just someone who wants to eat ramen for lunch…"

Those are the most words he's ever told her and yet they seem so ominous. She smiles at him in the meantime as he pulls her to the station so they can get to the ramen stand to eat.

Takumi Naka doesn't really know anything about Kiriyama Kazuo. She doesn't know who he is and where he's from. She doesn't know anything about his family except that he could potentially be the son of the rich widower with a missing son of the same last name. She doesn't know why he doesn't speak much and why he intimidates her too easily. But all of those might be revealed to her soon.

For now, his subtle smile and his gentle grip on her wrist is enough.

She doesn't need much anyway; she probably never will.

* * *

**So yeah... A psychopath's playing as a psychopath... =D**

**To be honest, I don't know how to develop this into a romantic thing... =D**

**I'm just writing and not really planning...**

**It's not really promising huh? But rest assured... I have an ending in mind already... The details in between are just a bit... unknown... Haha! =D**

**So please do click the REVIEW button and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated! =D**

**Thanks for reading! =D**

**chquine_harvinellisse**


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